Improvement in corn-planter



wat dimite.

Letters Patent liTo. 92,084, dated June 29, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN CORN-PLANTER.

The Schedule referred to :in these Letters Patent and making part. of the same.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. Mornns, of Gordonsville, in the county of Orange, and State of Virginia, have invented a new and improved Combined Corn-Planter and Fertilizer; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a top View;

Figure 2, a section through line x z of fig. 1; and

Figure 3, a section through line y y of fig. l.

The object of this invention is to improve the construction of combined corn-planters and fertilizers, in such a manuel' as to prevent their cracking the corn, and to distribute the fertilizer iu a better manner than h eretofore. In attaining this object, an improved arrangement of the several parts of such a combined machine is also had.

1n the drawings- A A represent the side-pieces;

B Bl B2, the cross-pieces;

G, Vthe tongue or draught-pole;

I) D, the handles;

E E, standards supporting the standards; and

vF, a round, which connects the standards, and attaches the handles thereto.

.lhe'se several parts are, preferably of wood, and constitute the frame of the machine.

In connection with them, I also employ1 a wooden hopper, divided into two compartments, the forward and larger one for the fertilizer, and the rearone for the seed-corn.

This hopper (which is not shown in the drawings) is provided with a cover, and attached to the metallic hopper-bottom, shown in the several drawings, by any suitable means. j

G is a large draughtwheel, mounted on a crossshaft, G', between the side -vpieces A A, and just inrear of the bottom of the handles, and, by means of a mitre-wheel, g, at its side, operating a longitudinal shaft, H, which, in its turn, by means of changeable and adj ustable gear-wheels, ii, of different sizes, operates the seed-cylinder shaft I, so as to plant more or less rapidly, according as the gearing Ii i may, at any time, have been adjusted.

- The mitre-wheel g runs on the shaft G independent ofthe draught-wheel, and may be made to run fastf or loose on the shaft 4by means of a friction-clutch, Z, which can be adjusted by a lever, L, extending toward the round F.

J is a plate attached to one of the frame-pieces, which serves to support and furnish a fulcrum for the lever, and, at the same time, to hold in place a spring, Ii, which keeps the parts g and H iu gear when the lever is. not employed to uugear them.

The cylinder-shaft I runs longitudinally with the frame, directly in rear of and in line with the draughtpole.

M is a metallic box, attached, by lugs or arms m m, to the side-pieces of the frame. It is, llike the hopper, divided into'two compartments, by means of a vertical partition extending across it.

The bearings or hangers of shaft I are attachedto its ends, projecting vertically downward, and may be made adjustable up and down, so as to vbring the cylinders to the proper position with relation to the concaves in which they work. i

The boot N and standard 'p of the opening-plow P are supported by diverging arms or braces, u n,attached to the side-pieces A A-and cross-piece B.

The covering-plows P I are arranged as shown in g. l.

The box M is cast with a bottom concave on the under side, the concave being concentric with the seedcylinders, that operate in connection with it.

The two cylinders (or one may be employed, extending the entire length of the box) do not touch the surface of the concave, but are nicely adjusted, s0 as to be, throughout their whole upper surface, nearly, but not quite in contact with it, in order that there shall be no unnecessary friction.

Two openings are cut through or cast in the bottom v of box M, one in each compartment.

The position, size, and shape of these feed-'openings are clearly shown in tig, 1. l

In the upper part of the fertilizer-compartment is an agitator, O, operated from the shaft I by gearing, o, at the fi ont end of the box.

"I is the cylinder, or that part thereof which distributes t-he corn, and l." the one, or that part thereof which deposits the guano or other fertilizer.

t t are the two seed-pockets in the part T, and t t' those for the fertilizer in the part 'I".

The pockets t t are not arranged along thesame longitudinal lilies on the cylinder, but such a line running through any pocket tt would be laterally distant ninety degrees from a similar line on each' side of it running through pockets t t of the other set. Thus, l

a pocket, t, in the revolution of the cylinder, always arrives at the edge, e, of the feed-opening in the rear apartment of the box a quarter of a revolution before the pocket t arrives there in the forward apartment. If provision were not made to counteract it; the result of this would be that the corn would first fall to the ground, and then, in another place in the furrow, the. fertilizer would be deposited,so that the two would not be brought in contact. v

To obviate this difficulty, I attacha curved plate, r, to the right side of the box M, at the rear compartment, and extend it down under the rear cylinder, to

the, lowestpoint thereof, as seen in iig., 2, the plate fr' thus forminglan extension of the concentric, concave at that point. The result of this arrangement is, that the seed in the pocket twhich arrived at the edge e in advance ofthe fertilizerin the pocket t is not dropped till it-has been carried down to the lower edge of plate fr, at which moment the fertilizer has also passed by the edge e, and is dropped from the point c', iig. 3. The fertilizer-chamber being,r slightly in ad- Vance ofthe seed-chamber, and theseed and fertilizer dropping at nearly the same time, they are brought together in the'liill in the proper manner. It will be observed, also, that the seed drops at once, while the fine fertilizer-dust spills more slowly from the pockets as they gradually emerge from the point e', so that the fertilizer is strewn along the hill, over the seed, by the forward motion of the plantel'. The action ot' the in strnment, in this respect, is singularly perfect, being as nearly like that of the skilled human hand as it is possible to effect.

To prevent the cracking of the corn by the sharp edge e, as the cylinder rolls around, I make the seedpockets tt inclined or oblique, as seen in g..2, so thatl they extendnin a direction nearly tangential to the cyl inder. The edge c then acts merely as a straightodge, scraping the surplus seed lightly and easily away from the pocket, without the possibility of crushing or injuring any of it.

Having thus described my invention,

\Vhat'I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In combination with the box M and concevoconvex bottom s, the cylinder T,`when the latter is provided with oblique pockets, and all arranged in the manner and for the purpose specified.

2. The arrangement of the pockets tt so that they arrive at the edge of the feed-openings at diiierent times, when employed in connection with the curved plate r, as and for the purposes specified.

To the above specification of my invention I have signed my hand, this 9th day of February, 1869.

GEO. W. MOYERS. Witnesses:

CnAs. A. PETTIT, SoLoN C. KnMoN.' 

